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European coal prices have hit a 13-year high as coal supply to Europe remains constrained and utilities fire up more coal power plants amid surging natural gas prices. The price of coal for delivery next year to the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp (ARA) hub has risen by 2.6 percent to $137 per metric ton, ... The prices are at their highest since 2008 as more coal is added to Europe’s electricity output these days amid record-high gas prices, and as supply and stockpiles are scrambling to meet demand. “Stock levels across Europe are low, and as on the gas market, coal supply from...

China will stop building coal-fired power projects in other countries, President Xi Jinping said yesterday in an announcement that's expected to accelerate the global shift away from fossil fuels. The pledge, made at the U.N. General Assembly in New York, comes as other industrialized nations are reversing economic policies that fueled the construction of coal plants outside of their borders, often in energy-deprived nations that are vulnerable to the effects of poverty and climate change. China's move shadows similar decisions by South Korea and top coal financiers in the Group of Seven (Climatewire, June 14). Yesterday's announcement was short on...

Congressional Democrats and the Biden administration are working towards an ambitious goal of eliminating coal-fired electricity and 'decarbonize' the US electric grid by 2035.To meet such an aggressive deadline, House Democrats unveiled a $150 billion 'clean electricity' program to incentivize utility companies to phase out fossil fuels for clean energy. The Clean Electricity Performance Program, or CEPP, would reward utility that boost their percentage of electricity supplied to the grid from green sources - such as solar, wind and hydro, between 2023 and 2030. Exhaust rises from the East Bend Generating Station, a coal-fired power plant owned and operated by...

The European Court of Justice slapped Poland with a €500,000 ($586,000) daily fine on Monday in response to the country’s refusal to shut down the Turow open-cast lignite mine near the Czech border. The Czech Republic took the case to court over complaints that the mine is causing cross-border environmental hazards, especially as it concerns air and water quality. In May, the EU’s top court told Poland to shut down the mine, though Poland has refused to comply. In June, Prague asked the EU’s top court to fine Poland €5 million ($5.9 million) per day for failing to halt production...

Despite its ambitious green energy targets, Europe could be forced to burn more coal this winter if natural gas stockpiles are not adequately replenished amid record-high gas prices, an expert on the EU energy market told Russian news agency TASS on Thursday. Gas prices continue to be pushed up by the risk of insufficient gas storage ahead of the winter heating season, EU energy expert Simonas Vileikis told TASS. “If inventories are not refilled now and winter turns out cold enough, EU countries may be forced to fire up power plants burning fuels other than gas, including coal, to generate...

European energy prices might be at record levels, but there is still room for prices to run... Of course, natural gas prices are soaring everywhere—not just in Europe. The U.S. benchmark price for natural gas has nearly doubled over the last year, ... U.S. gas exports are soaring more, hitting all-time records. ... Germany is battling the highest inflation since 2008, thanks to higher energy prices. Typically, demand for natural gas this time of year is still low. Today’s high prices, at a time when demand is typically low, are worrisome for Europe, which is now looking at a difficult...

The UK fired up an old coal power plant on Monday to meet its electricity needs.Warm, still, autumn weather has meant wind farms have not generated as much power as normal, while soaring prices have made it too costly to rely on gas.As a result, National Grid ESO - which is responsible for balancing the UK's electricity supply - confirmed coal was providing 3% of national power.It said it asked EDF to fire up West Burton A, which had been on standby.On Tuesday, the use of coal returned to 2.2% of the UK's electricity generation.

London (CNN Business). The Australian government said Monday that the country would keep producing and exporting coal "well beyond 2030," despite a stark warning from a top UN climate official that failing to scrap the fossil fuel will "wreak havoc" on the economy. The comments, made in a rebuke by the minister for resources and water, Keith Pitt, puts Australia at odds with several other developed nations, which are working towards phasing out coal by the end of the decade. "The future of this crucial industry will be decided by the Australian Government, not a foreign body that wants to...

John Kerry, President Biden’s special envoy for climate, is reportedly looking to push China to issue a moratorium on financing coal projects during a trip to the country next week. The Wall Street Journal reported the plans, citing people familiar with the matter, one of whom said that U.S. officials are looking for China to declare a formal pause as Beijing has yet to fund any new foreign coal plants or investments this year. 2021 is the first year Beijing has not launched new funding for foreign coal projects since 2013, when it launched its Belt and Road Initiative focused...

U.S. utilities are moving to replace coal plants with renewable-energy sources, but the shift is happening more slowly at the cooperatives that serve much of rural America. Electric cooperatives sourced 32% of their power from coal in 2019, according to industry data. By comparison, the U.S. as a whole got about 23% of its electricity from coal that year, a 42-year low, according to the Energy Information Administration. Co-ops, which provide power to about 42 million Americans, primarily in the Midwest and West, have remained more reliant on coal than investor-owned utilities in part because they don’t have the same...

The Biden administration has approved a massive solar power project in California that will produce enough power to electrify 90,000 homes. That’s the good news. The bad news is that producing the solar panels in China using coal-fired electrical power plants to generate electricity will produce almost as much CO2 as the fossil fuel plants the solar power is supposed to replace.Manufacturing solar panels is a dirty business. Starting with the raw mineral quartz, the refining process produces a highly toxic substance, silicon tetrachloride, that some manufacturers simply end up dumping. Huge amounts of power and heat must be used...

Solar panel installations are surging in the U.S. and Europe as Western countries seek to cut their reliance on fossil fuels. But the West faces a conundrum as it installs panels on small rooftops and in sprawling desert arrays: Most of them are produced with energy from carbon-dioxide-belching, coal-burning plants in China. Concerns are mounting in the U.S. and Europe that the solar industry’s reliance on Chinese coal will create a big increase in emissions in the coming years as manufacturers rapidly scale up production of solar panels to meet demand. That would make the solar industry one of the...

If the Public Utilities Commission OK's Xcel’s largest ever rate increase, electric bills for Colorado customers will have increased 20% since the start of the year.. Xcel Energy has proposed a massive transmission project to help move power from rural areas to the urban Front Range. Xcel Energy is pushing for a record $344 million rate increase it says it needs to build a smarter, greener electric grid. But consumer advocates and state regulators are pushing back over the price tag. A major concern is that along with an earlier rate increase and other pending requests since the start of...

A hard coal power station in Hamburg that generates 1,600 MW was shut down for good on July 7, according to a local news service, a mere six years after its initial opening. And, the Moorburg plant's owner, Vattenfall, aims to pursue a new, hydrogen project at the same site, designed to transform offshore wind energy into green hydrogen. This is a power plant that lasted barely longer than a U.S. presidential term — practically unheard of for power plants generally, which are naturally built to last for much longer.

Illinois doesn’t try that hard to attract businesses and workers. Its 9.5% corporate tax rate is the fifth highest in the country. Its property taxes are twice as high as those of its neighbors. And unlike most states in the Midwest, it doesn’t have a right-to-work law giving workers the choice not to join a union. Illinois does have one thing going for it: cheap and reliable electricity. The state would lose that too under an 800-page climate bill Democrats in Springfield are contriving to jam through the statehouse. “The proposed energy legislation being circulated will be the largest rate...

Customers across Colorado could see higher electric and natural gas bills if regulators approve proposals by utilities to recover costs from a winter storm that had them scrambling along with many other companies to buy enough fuel to make it through the freezing weather. During its meeting Wednesday, the Colorado Public Utilities Commission will consider the next steps after receiving applications from Xcel Energy-Colorado and Black Hills Energy, which have proposed spreading out the expense for customers over at least a year. The PUC is reviewing how utilities prepared for the weather in February. The frigid weather that gripped the...

Consumer-members of Ohio electric cooperatives understand the benefits of renewable energy sources like wind and solar — endless supplies that can’t be used up, with little to no carbon footprint. Why, then, can’t Buckeye Power, the generation cooperative that provides electricity to the 25 member cooperatives in the state, switch to all renewable resources? This month, we attempt to answer why coal must remain an important part of our energy generation resources. Why do we STILL need coal? An important thing to know about electricity is that it's produced as you're using it. Why can't we switch to all renewables?...

Coal use is surging in some of the world’s largest economies as electricity demand rebounds from the pandemic, illustrating the challenges to countries looking to wean themselves off the dirty but reliable fossil fuel. Coal was in decline for years in many countries, but its use is now picking up in the U.S., China and Europe despite growing pressure from governments, investors and environmentalists to curb carbon emissions. The leading reason for the uptick—which has pushed coal prices to multiyear highs—is rising power demand as economies reopen rapidly from pandemic hibernation. While analysts and executives say the resurgence of coal...

DENVER — Xcel Energy customers could see higher bills in 2022. The company submitted a proposal to raise rates to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. They say the increase will help fund “next-generation technology investments that expand and strengthen the reliability of the electric grid for customers, advance Colorado’s clean energy policies, and increase capacity to meet growing customer needs and expectations.” Xcel said that since 2019 and through 2022, it will spend for $4 billion on the investments. How much will my bill increase? Residential customers would see their bills increase by an average of $9.46 a month, or...

With power demand recovering from the pandemic, European utilities are using more coal as natural gas inventories are unusually low for this time of the year due to a cold snap in late winter and early spring. This year, despite the record-high carbon price in Europe, the use of coal for power generation has jumped by up to 15 percent, ... Gas storage is so low now that Europe cannot afford to run extra power generation with the fuel ... Natural gas stockpiles are some 25 percent below the five-year average, and with such a right gas market, utilities run...